A Notch Up (completed)
by VQ
Summary: Phoebe casts a spell to increase her premonition power, with dire consequences. Now, Piper and Prue will have to find a way to overpower a powerful demon by themselves ...
1. Consequences

Prue now disappears and reappears elsewhere when astral projecting. Phoebe has the power of telepathy. The sisters three together share the power of Shelabsis - the power of summoning. All spells are copyright from me; all characters (except Drimigac) belongs to the show "Charmed".  
  
1  
  
2 Unveil the secret which I so yearn to find  
  
3 Increase my power which keeps me half-blind  
  
With every word and every move I now make  
  
Increase my power for innocents' sake  
  
Phoebe paused with her spell and removed the velvet-black cloth hovering above the lit candles. She gestured for her eldest sister, Prue Halliwell, to continue.  
  
4 Although I have the vast power to move  
  
My psychic sister's power has a rather large groove  
  
Let it expand to a power never before  
  
Let her strengthened power open a new door  
  
Prue lifted up the three candles and touched their flames together. The flames burnt brightly and she used her telekinesis to hover it above the air. Piper continued the spell.  
  
5 With these last words of the spell to complete  
  
6 And the last words of my latest good deed  
  
7 Develop my psychic sister's power greater and higher  
  
8 Let her develop into a special new seer  
  
The sisters joined their voices and recited the end of the spell.  
  
9 The Power of Three shall prove beyond  
  
The beginning and ending of every dawn  
  
The flame changed into a bright blue ball and shot into Phoebe. Phoebe shuddered and sighed and then straightened herself.  
  
"I supposed it worked, I mean it should have, I mean it must, right?" Phoebe blabbered. Piper held up one hand and Phoebe stopped abruptly. Prue smiled and got up to clear up the place.  
  
"It definitely worked," Piper reassured Phoebe. Phoebe grinned.  
  
***  
  
"Phebes?" Prue Halliwell poked her head in her sister's room and sneaked a peek at her sister's bed - and it's contents. She blushed furiously.  
  
"Cole! Tell Phebes that I'll be out and French toast is out the table," Prue ordered and closed the door with a click. She grabbed her coat and ran down the stairs, calling out to her other sister on the way.  
  
"Cole is upstairs, Phebes is asleep and I'm leaving!" Prue dashed out the door. Piper, in the kitchen, smiled and expressed her love for her sisters. Phoebe was usually either in bed, kicking demon butt or in the attic.  
  
"Save some of that love for me, my darling wife," Leo whispered as he orbed in.  
  
***  
  
Phoebe groaned as she opened her eyes. She hated waking up, but she could always make an exception if she woke up with Cole beside her. She kissed Cole good morning and gripped him to hoist herself up.  
  
Suddenly, she felt herself going into a premonition. She relaxed and let the premonition unravel.  
  
The dark smoke cleared and showed Phoebe weaving her spell.  
  
Phoebe grasped the meaning immediately. It meant that her spell worked! She told her good news to Cole and telepathically to her sisters. She then grabbed Cole and they shimmered to the bathroom.  
  
***  
  
Phoebe had three premonitions since breakfast, and she was still psyched. Piper was getting annoyed, though. It certainly was hard for her to go over the edge whenever Phoebe went into premonition mode. But she coped. She had to.  
  
***  
  
Phoebe gripped the edge of the toilet bowl and retched lunch and dinner out. She flushed the bowl and washed her hands in the sink. She lifted up a handful of water to splash over her face.  
  
She peeked at her face and the water tilted into the sink. Her skin was pale and her eyes were sunken. Her hair was tangled and even her body looked hollow. She decided to tell her sisters immediately.  
  
Phoebe stepped out the toilet - and collapsed. She wheezed out her sisters' names, hoping that they'd hear it. She conjured up the last of her might and whispered her sisters' names telepathically.  
  
Prue, who was in the shopping centre, heard Phoebe's call for help. She gasped and ran out of the shopping centre. She glimpsed her car parked in the alley and decided to blow it off. She dashed to a dark alley and astral- projected herself away.  
  
Piper, who was making out with Leo in the couch of the living room, paused suddenly. Leo brushed a wisp of hair away from her face and asked what was wrong. She gestured for Leo to follow her and ran up the stairs.  
  
"Phebes!" the two elder sisters shouted at the same time. Leo appeared at the stairway a second later, and was dumbstruck at the sight of Phoebe unconscious. Prue used her telekinesis and moved her sister to her bed. Once she was done -  
  
"What's wrong with my sister, Leo? Phebes Never just collapses. I want an explanation right now! If anything hurt my baby sister I'll-" Prue started.  
  
"Hold on, Prue. I don't know what's wrong," Leo informed his sister-in-law and orbed away. Piper, who was sitting beside Phoebe, had tears running down her cheeks.  
  
"Nothing will happen, right Prue?" she asked. Prue sat beside her and nodded slowly, unsure herself. 


	2. Banishing Demon Ass

"Bad news, Prue," Leo whispered softly. Prue advanced on Leo, her narrowed eyes glittering menacingly. Piper held out a hand to calm Prue and it worked. Prue turned to Phoebe and with tears running down her cheeks-  
  
"Tell me, Leo." Her voiced caught and wobbled. Leo was surprised. Prue rarely cried in front of him - totally rare. He hugged Prue comfortingly.  
  
"When you three were working the spell, the Demon of Dark Magic was weaving a curse elsewhere. When the enhanced power - or the blue ball - entered Phoebe, it left a path open so the Charmed Protection was broken. The curse entered Phoebe. Since it was this after that, with every premonition Phoebe has, she would become weaker. If the curse isn't countered by the next 30 hours, Phebes will - die," Leo croaked out.  
  
"No!" Piper mouthed. Prue grabbed her hand, and Phoebe's, and concentrated on Cole. Piper did the same and somehow, Cole was summoned into the circle. He was told everything.  
  
"Prue and Piper, look through the Book for information regarding the Demon of Dark Magic. If I'm not wrong, his name is Drimigac. Cole, stay here okay?" Leo whispered softly and orbed away.  
  
"Hang in there, Phebes," Prue whispered in her sister's ear and ran up to the attic.  
  
***  
  
"This is so frustrating!" Prue slammed the book shut. Piper dropped the crystal she was holding. It was obvious that the scrying didn't work either. Suddenly, a chilly blast of wand slipped through the attic.  
  
Prue and Piper watched as the pages flipped by themselves. Prue felt a prickling sensation at the back of her neck. She spun around and caught sight of a mist taking shape - of Drimigac, the Demon of Dark Magic.  
  
Prue flung her hand at the mist and it was pushed back roughly. Prue glared at the mist and tapped on her sister's shoulder. Piper tossed a look over her shoulder and gasped.  
  
Drimigac stood there. Piper threw up her hands on instant and froze the demon. Piper frowned at the demon while Prue consulted the open book. It was at a page entitled "Demon of Dark Magic."  
  
"It's a Power of Three spell," Prue muttered. Piper turned back to the book, after ensuring Drimigac was frozen. She read the pages and wrung her hands desperately.  
  
"Now what?" she whimpered. Prue gulped and stared at the frozen demon. An idea was forming slowly in her mind. She used her telekinesis to turn the pages quickly, searching for a particular one. She soon stopped and pointed it out to her sister.  
  
"Banishing Demons," Piper read out.  
  
There is a simple spell to banish a demon temporarily, requiring the minimum of one witch. The banish ends at dawn.  
  
"We banish him, break the charm and then vanquish him with the Power of Three!" Prue cried out, excited. They consulted the book and memorised the spell, changing different words to suit their need as they went along.  
  
Piper grimaced at the last sentences. She checked the time worriedly; it was midnight. They had a maximum of five hours left. Prue signalled to her to get every thing that they needed.  
  
Piper scrambled to a corner of the attic and reached out. Her fingers closed around a dusty surface and she pulled. Dust flew out as she coughed. Prue rushed to her aid and stopped her.  
  
"Next time ask me," Prue instructed and used her magic to pull out the box, stirring as little dust as possible. She directed her magic carefully and opened the box. Piper reached in carefully and pulled out an emerald necklace.  
  
"Waste of a good necklace, if you ask me," Piper grunted and got up to put the necklace on the book. Prue magicked the box back and went to get the other needed items.  
  
"We need a teaspoon of cinnamon powder, a grated garlic clove, a teaspoon salt and a little bit of grated onion skin, Prue," Piper informed her sister. She flicked her fingers at the demon to freeze him again and rushed down the stairs.  
  
Prue eyed the demon cautiously and moved towards the book. She placed a protective hand on the book and drew it closer to her. She kept on staring at the frozen demon until Piper burst through the door, the ingredients in her hands.  
  
"Relax, Prue, he's frozen!" Piper told her sister and put the ingredients on the floor. Prue nodded and consulted the book again. She ran a finger down the lines and tapped at a sentence.  
  
"Now we only need a cobweb, dust or dirt from the last place the demon was seen, or where the demon is currently being seen by the witch. We also need two white candles and a lock of hair from the demon," Prue told her sister. Piper scowled.  
  
"A lock of hair? I'll keep him frozen, Prue, you get the hair," she told her sister. Prue grinned. She pointed her finger at the open door and a pair of scissors soon settled itself in Prue's hand.  
  
"Careful now, Prue," Piper warned as Prue approached the demon. Prue suddenly stopped and backed away. Piper glared at Prue and opened her mouth to argue. Prue interrupted her.  
  
"I can use my power, I totally forgot!" Prue blurted out. Piper grinned as Prue put the scissors on the book. She flicked her fingers at the scissors and it danced up to the demon's head. A lock of hair was snipped off.  
  
The hair fell slowly down to the floor and Piper quickly froze it. Prue directed the scissors back down and then worked on the hair. Piper darted around the attic and soon arrived with a cobweb, a bowl of dust and dirt and two candles.  
  
"We don't have much time left," Prue fretted as she glanced at the clock. Forty-five minutes had already passed. Piper froze the demon again and Prue magicked the ingredients onto the floor. They leaned out and set the ingredients out.  
  
Prue put the two candles in a straight line and placed the cobweb in between the two candles. Piper sprinkled the salt, cinnamon, onionskin and garlic clove on the cobweb before sticking the necklace securely in the middle of the cobweb.  
  
Prue then shook the dust and dirt over the necklace as Piper put the lock of hair in the necklace. Prue grabbed a match and set the lock of hair on fire. The girls sat cross-legged. Piper unfroze the demon and they recited the spell.  
  
Demon of Dark Magic, hear our spell  
  
On this earth you must no longer dwell  
  
We send you away to a land far beyond  
  
Where you cannot break out until at least dawn  
  
We push you forcefully into this necklace  
  
And put upon it a dreadful curse  
  
For those who open this without our consent  
  
In their lives, will suffer a very big dent  
  
They recited the spell with fury, pain and hope for their sister. The demon shrieked and was pulled into the necklace. Piper smiled grimly and Prue clapped softly. They glanced at the clock.  
  
"We have three and a half hours left, Piper. Let's make this quick," Prue noted. Piper nodded and cleared the spell reagents away. She lifted the necklace carefully and showed it to Prue.  
  
"What about this?" Piper asked. Prue magicked it to her and stared at the hovering necklace. She grabbed it and drew it across her neck, before clasping it. A mask of determination settled over Prue's face as she magicked the pages to flip.  
  
"I'll check on Phoebe," Piper promised as she stared at the dangling necklace. She slipped down the stairs to Phoebe's room. Prue gazed after her. Her attention quickly snapped back to the book and she focused on her task. 


	3. Over and Done With

Ten minutes later, Piper returned the attic. Prue was trailing her finger down cursive handwriting. Traces of a smile blossomed on Prue's face. Piper grinned and rushed to Prue. She read the page carefully.  
  
"I think this should do it," Prue murmured to Piper. Piper checked the spell and read it out, adding Phoebe's name.  
  
Cursed witches are worthless  
  
Yet the curse must be removed first  
  
This spell shall do the deed  
  
And remove the poisonous and toxic lead  
  
With these finals words, we work our spell  
  
And the curse upon Phoebe shall no longer dwell  
  
"No, it won't work. This is for amateur spells, Prue," Piper informed her sister. Prue scowled at her younger sister. She magicked the pages again, looking for the needed spell.  
  
"There!" Piper cried, clutching Prue's hand to stop her. Prue frowned and stopped her magic. Piper pushed back a few old pages and pointed out the page she had seen. It was a yellowing parchment entitled "To Temporary Cast Away Powerful Curses".  
  
Prue grinned and checked the page. The spell was immensely complex, needing only two witches. Piper sighed thankfully. Some of the ingredients were ones they did not have and Prue agreed to collect them.  
  
"Wait, we need something to banish it. Do we have an amulet?" Prue asked. Piper shrugged, pointing to the dusty box. Prue whispered the spell to herself, and Piper followed her example. After a few minutes, they stopped practising.  
  
"I'll go to the Wicca store to get all these items," Prue decided. "I'll stop by the garden and kitchen too." She unhooked the necklace, slapped it into Piper's hand and astral-projected away.  
  
Piper scowled and clasped the necklace around her neck. Then, she reached into the candle-box and withdrew six white candles, one greenish-yellow candle, and one silver candle.  
  
"I need something belonging to each of us three," Piper told herself. She froze the attic and walked into Phoebe's room. Cole was holding Phoebe's hand, reassuring her. Suddenly, Piper caught sight of a glint of light on Phoebe's neck.  
  
"Phoebe, I need that necklace. It belongs to you, and it is a symbol of love," Piper told her sister. Cole pulled the necklace off Phoebe's sweaty neck and handed it to her. Piper thanked Cole and slipped the necklace into her pocket.  
  
"Forgive me, Leo, but this is a matter of life and death," Piper whispered as she tugged at her wedding ring. Then, she checked Prue's room, soon grabbing a pair of earrings given to her on her birthday.  
  
Piper took the jewellery out of her pocket and checked it. Clutching the jewellery carefully, she stepped back up to the attic and saw Prue there. All the items were on the floor, as so the amulet.  
  
"Good," Piper smiled and placed the jewellery onto the floor. She started arranging the items carefully. She nodded at Prue to get Phoebe. Prue astral-projected to Phoebe's room and told Cole that it was spell-time. Cole shimmered away.  
  
"Same goes, Phebes. It's spell time for you too!" Prue told her sister. She levitated her youngest sister and magicked her into the circle of white candles in the attic.  
  
"Ready," Prue alerted her sister. Piper picked up the silver candle, which symbolized cancellation. She touched its flame to the yellow-green candle (sickness). The candle burst into flame. Piper quickly signalled to her sister and they began reciting.  
  
Take this curse and cast it away  
  
Let it not return until a new day  
  
Similar to warlock, this curse banished be  
  
And the eyes of the cursed shall once again see  
  
We banish this curse into this amulet  
  
And yet the "away" shall be so very curt  
  
Come back into the cursed it must  
  
Come back into the cursed it will very fast  
  
Warning, witches, be careful and ready  
  
But remember this curse must banished be  
  
The yellow-green candle melted in a blast of light as a black orb of light shot out of Phoebe's body. Phoebe stared at the hovering light with panicked eyes. Suddenly, the amulet glowed.  
  
"It's working," Prue murmured. The amulet shot out a ray of white light. The ray shone upon the orb and pulled it into the amulet. And it was over. Phoebe sat up and sighed, relieved.  
  
"Can we banish that dratted demon now?" Phoebe asked. She leaned over Prue's shoulder and waited for the flicking to stop. Prue soon ceased and pointed out the parchment to Phoebe. Phoebe read it quietly.  
  
"That's a lot of words," Phoebe passed her judgement. "Yet the actions are so few. We only need to banish the demon and smash the necklace in which he lies. All before dawn. Which is in, oh, half an hour."  
  
"What?" Piper yelped. Phoebe showed her sisters how they should sit in a triangle.  
  
They quickly followed her simple instructions. Phoebe palmed the necklace and placed it on the floor, the pointed end facing west.  
  
The sun rises in the east and sets in the west  
  
As so this demon shall be laid to rest  
  
It shall be brought away as the sun sets  
  
Never to be heard again as the sun rises  
  
Phoebe chanted, providing a simple introduction. She rehearsed the lines of the spell in her mind and promised her sisters that she would recite it telepathically as well as externally. Piper signalled frantically at her sisters and they began.  
  
[Author's Note: Sentences flow into another, so it is kind of difficult to understand.]  
  
Demon of Dark Magic, you have hurt us much  
  
Now you shall no longer live to touch  
  
Hear or see, smell or taste  
  
We send you away with haste  
  
You have weaved magic, dark and evil  
  
Into many lives and made us feel  
  
Unwanted and unloved, yet we are not  
  
And for that you will rot  
  
We send you away into the shadows  
  
Never again to return to light  
  
And like many others, our foes  
  
We have fought you with our might  
  
Away with you, dratted creature!  
  
Your face in this book will no longer feature  
  
Hah! We have won once again  
  
And you shall live no longer to cast more pain  
  
Phoebe raised her fist and brought it down on the necklace. The green glass smashed and a howl was heard. The demon appeared and began to writhe. Its skin began to melt as it yelled.  
  
"Eww," Piper turned her face away. The demon emitted a last shriek before disappearing. Phoebe sighed with relief and tapped Piper's shoulder. She smiled at her elder sister.  
  
"It's gone," Phoebe informed Piper. Piper wheezed out a whisper of thanks. Suddenly, it was Phoebe who began to writhe. Prue caught her by the shoulders just before she collapsed.  
  
"Phebes, are you okay?" Piper asked, concerned. Suddenly, a ray of blue light and one of black was released from Phoebe. The light broke into small pinpricks and also disappeared.  
  
"Well, there goes my power," Phoebe sighed. Prue and Piper glared at her and she held up her hands in defeat. "Okay, okay, no big regret," she reassured them. Prue flicked her finger at the floor and cleaned up the mess in a jiffy.  
  
"Well, I need to thank a kind boyfriend of mine," Phoebe excused herself and let herself out. Prue and Piper looked at each other and sighed.  
  
"She'll never change, but maybe she learned," Prue muttered to her sister.  
  
And hell did Phoebe learn a lot. Hell . yes, familiar word that. Hmm . 


End file.
